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Go bananas with potassium
Next time you get a leg cramp, try eating a banana. Bananas are rich in potassium, the predominant positive electrolyte -- an electrically charged mineral within your body's cells.
Potassium works in combination with other electrolytes, such as sodium and chloride, to help your muscles contract and relax. More importantly, electrolytes help carry nutrients into and out of the cells, convey messages along your nerves, help control your heartbeat, and regulate your blood pressure. That, in turn, can help you prevent other health problems like heart disease and kidney trouble.
Quick Facts About Potassium
- There is no RDA since potassium is so plentiful in food, but the estimated minimum requirement for adults is 1,600 to 2,000 mg per day.
- Foods rich in potassium include bananas, baked potato with the skin on, avocados, black beans, oranges, grapefruit and tomato juices, milk, cantaloupe, honeydew, chard, dried lentils, and whole-grain cereals.
- Though deficiency is rare, signs include low blood pressure, weakness, paralysis, life-threatening irregular or rapid heartbeat, and hypokalemia, which can be fatal.
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You May Need More Potassium if You Have (or Have Had)
- Chronic malnutrition
- Recent surgery
- Part of your gastrointestinal tract surgically removed
- Recent severe burns or injuries
Or if You
- Take diuretics, cortisone drugs, or digitalis preparations
- Are older than age 55
- Are sick and experience excessive vomiting and/or diarrhea
What Works Best -- and Worst -- with Potassium
- Potassium, sodium, and chloride are closely linked and naturally work together.
- Regardless of ratios, it is best not to consume more sodium than potassium. Avoid using excess sodium.
Forms Available
- Individual supplements
- Part of a multisupplement
- Oral solutions
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Chemical Forms of Potassium
- Potassium chloride (KCl)
- Potassium bicarbonate
- Potassium aspartate
- Potassium orotate
Comments on Potassium
- The forms of potassium supplement available have equal chemical activity.
- Potassium, sodium, and chloride work together to keep regulate many of your bodily functions.
- Potassium chloride (KCl) is salt alternative for people on low-sodium diets.
- Potassium bicarbonate is used as an antacid for people on low-sodium diets.
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Known Benefits of Potassium
- Supports regular heartbeat and muscle contraction
- Regulates osmolarity in tissues and cells
- Controls the transport of nutrients to cells
- Supports a myriad of normal functions of the heart, muscle, kidneys, and other regions of the body
Unproven Claims
- Prevents and treats hypertension
- Prevents strokes
- Lowers risk of developing stomach and breast cancer
- Prevents heart disease
Potassium May Prevent These Signs of Deficiency
- Hypokalemia:
- Weakness and paralysis of muscles
- Muscle cramping and tremors
- Muscle death
- Distended abdomen
- Loss of appetite
- Nausea
- Vomiting (this is usually a cause of potassium loss)
- Irregular heartbeats possibly leading to a heart attack
- Glucose intolerance
- Kidney impairment
- Water imbalance
- Rapid and irregular heartbeat
- Congestive heart failure and other heart problems
Potassium deficiency is extremely rare because potassium is abundant in foods.
Recommended Dosage Range for Potassium
- Our pharmacists suggest that healthy adults may take between 1,600 to 2,000 mg daily to supplement a well-balanced diet.
- RDA values were set as the minimum needed to offset deficiency or disease, not as an actual value needed for optimum health.
- In the United States, the average consumption of potassium varies greatly. Generally those who eat more fresh fruit and vegetables consume more potassium.
- Consult your physician before starting any high-dose supplement regimen.
Dietary Sources
Food Tips
- Foods high in potassium include meat, milk, baked potatoes, bananas, orange juice, tomato products, beans, peas, lentils, and legumes.
- Potassium chloride (salt substitute) gives food a bitter taste.
- Salt substitutes should not be used if reducing potassium intake.
- Foods that have been processed or cooked could lose substantial amounts of potassium; however, potassium chloride added during cooking could reduce the amount lost into the water.
| Foods High in Potassium | Serving Size | Amount of Potassium | Units |
|---|
Avocado
Banana
Black beans
Cantaloupe
Chickpeas
Kidney beans
Lentils
Orange juice
Potato, baked with skin
Prune juice
Spinach, cooked
Tomato juice
|
1/2 medium
1 medium
1 cup
1 cup
1 cup
1 cup
1 cup
8 ounces
1 medium
8 ounces
1/2 cup
6 ounces
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550
451
801
494
477
713
731
474
844
706
419
658
|
mg
mg
mg
mg
mg
mg
mg
mg
mg
mg
mg
mg
|
When and How to Take Potassium
- Swallow tablets whole with a full glass of liquid.
- Take with food or after meals to enhance absorption.
- Divide large daily doses into three to four smaller doses throughout the day for better absorption.
What to Take with Potassium
- Calcium excretion is lowered by potassium. So those who want to increase their calcium levels should use potassium chloride instead of sodium chloride.
- Magnesium deficiency may make potassium deficiency harder to treat.
What Not to Take with Potassium
- Caffeine may increase potassium excretion.
Storage
- Keep potassium in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight and air.
- Don't store it in your bathroom medicine cabinet. Heat and moisture may make it less effective.
- Store safely out of children's reach.
Recommended Daily Allowance
| AGE/GROUP | RDA |
|---|
Infants
0 to 6 months
6 to 12 months
1 to 3 years
4 to 6 years
7 to 10 years
Males
11 to 14 years
15 to 18 years
19 to 24 years
25 to 50 years
51+ years
Females
11 to 14 years
15 to 18 years
19 to 24 years
25 to 50 years
51+ years
Pregnant
Lactating
1 to 6 months
6 to 12 months
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mg (milligrams)
No RDA
No RDA
No RDA
No RDA
No RDA
No RDA
No RDA
1600 to 2000 Provisional, No RDA
1600 to 2000 Provisional, No RDA
1600 to 2000 Provisional, No RDA
No RDA
No RDA
1600 to 2000 Provisional, No RDA
1600 to 2000 Provisional, No RDA
1600 to 2000 Provisional, No RDA
1600 to 2000 Provisional, No RDA
No RDA
No RDA
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Warnings
Consult a physician before use or do not use potassium if:- You are about to start a high-dose supplement program
Potassium May Have Interactions with
- ACE inhibitors: increase blood levels of potassium.
- Alcohol: increases gastrointestinal side effects of potassium.
- Amiloride: can cause a dangerous rise in blood pressure.
- Atropine and belladonna-like drugs: increase the possibility of intestinal ulcers that may be caused by potassium tablets.
- Calcium: increases the possibility of irregular heartbeat.
- Coffee: decreases absorption of potassium and increases gastrointestinal side effects.
- Colchicine: may deplete potassium level.
- Cortisone and cortisone-like drugs: decrease the effect of potassium.
- Cardiac glycosides: if you are concurrently taking potassium, do not discontinue potassium without physician's supervision since hypokalemia may occur, causing digoxin toxicity.
- Diuretics: may deplete potassium level and require supplemental potassium.
- Laxatives: may decrease the effect of potassium.
- Potassium-sparing diuretics: increase blood levels of potassium because of reduction in the excretion of potassium.
- Spironolactone: increases blood potassium level.
- Tetracyclines: potassium decreases the absorption and the effect of some tetracyclines.
Side Effects
Side effects are not expected for healthy individuals with normal circulation and kidney function.
Signs of Overdose
- Hyperkalemia:
- Muscle weakness and paralysis
- Heart attack
- Convulsions
Potassium toxicity is rare in those without renal impairment. A single dose of 25 grams, when a previous ingestion was normal (between 2 to 4 grams), may prove fatal. Gradual increases of potassium, however, can lead to tolerance of higher levels. Prior to the Great Potato Famine of 1848, people in Ireland typically consumed 20 to 40 grams of potassium per day (due to high consumption of potatoes).
What to Do in Case of Overdose
Stop use and contact your physician immediately.
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Sources & Further Reading
Books
- 1. Dell, BL and Sunde, RA.Handbook of Nutritionally Essential Mineral Elements. Marcel Dekker, Inc. New York, NY 1997.
2. Fauci et al. Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine, Fourteenth Ed. McGraw-Hill Co., Inc. 1998.
3. Groff, JL, Gropper, SS, Hunt, SM.Advanced Nutrition and Human Metabolism, Second Ed. West Pub. Co. St. Paul, MN 1995.
4. Kastrup EK et al. Drug Facts and Comparisons. Facts and Comparisons.
5. Meletis, CD and Jacobs, T.The Practitioner's Guide to Drug-Nutrient and Nutrient-Nutrient Interactions. 1996.
6. Werbach, MR.Nutritional Influences on Illness, Second Ed. Third Line Press. Tarzana, CA 1996.
Find more books on health and wellness at  barnesandnoble.com.
Articles
- 1. Barri YM; Wingo CS.The effects of potassium depletion and supplementation on blood pressure: a clinical review. Am J Med Sci, 314(1):37-40 1997 Jul.
- 2. Brancati FL; Appel LJ; Seidler AJ; Whelton PK.Effect of potassium supplementation on blood pressure in African Americans on a low-potassium diet. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Arch Intern Med, 156(1):61-7 1996 Jan 8.
- 3. Ettinger B; Pak CY; Citron JT; Thomas C; Adams-Huet B; Vangessel A.Potassium-magnesium citrate is an effective prophylaxis against recurrent calcium oxalate nephrolithiasis. J Urol, 158(6):2069-73 1997 Dec.
- 4. Fotherby MD; Potter JF.Long-term potassium supplementation lowers blood pressure in elderly hypertensive subjects. Int J Clin Pract, 51(4):219-22 1997 Jun.
- 5. Jansson B.Potassium, sodium, and cancer: a review. J Environ Pathol Toxicol Oncol, 15(2-4):65-73 1996.
- 6. Paterson DJ.Potassium and breathing in exercise. Sports Med, 23(3):149-63 1997 Mar.
- 7. Perazella MA; Mahnensmith RL.Hyperkalemia in the elderly: drugs exacerbate impaired potassium homeostasis. J Gen Intern Med, 12(10):646-56 1997 Oct.
- 8. Powers PS; Tyson IB; Stevens BA; Heal AV.Total body potassium and serum potassium among eating disorder patients. Int J Eat Disord, 18(3):269-76 1995 Nov.
- 9. Sacks FM; Brown LE; Appel L; Borhani NO; Evans D; Whelton P.Combinations of potassium, calcium, and magnesium supplements in hypertension. Hypertension, 26(6 Pt 1):950-6 1995 Dec.
- 10. Srivastava TN; Young DB.Impairment of cardiac function by moderate potassium depletion. J Card Fail, 1(3):195-200 1995 Jun.
- 11. Young DB; Lin H; McCabe RD.Potassium's cardiovascular protective mechanisms. Am J Physiol, 268(4 Pt 2):R825-37 1995 Apr.
- 12. Zehender M; Meinertz T; Faber T; Caspary A; Jeron A; Bremm K; Just H.Antiarrhythmic effects of increasing the daily intake of magnesium and potassium in patients with frequent ventricular arrhythmias. Magnesium in Cardiac Arrhythmias (MAGICA) Investigators. J Am Coll Cardiol, 29(5):1028-34 1997 Apr.
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